'I don't want to do it anywhere else': Spencer Tunick stands firm on nude photo

"I have had over 60 requests I'd say, those are the ones I could consider, and hundreds more in the last 48 hours, but today there's probably 60 on the table," she said.

"But honestly this is the shop we want, the 360 view we have around, with the beautiful heritage building facade."

Tunick told 3AW Radio's Tom Elliot on Thursday afternoon that he was intent on using the carpark for the work.

"Melbourne as a whole is an amazing city, I love it, I have such a close relationship with the people and the city, and it's really disappointing... I dont want to do it anywhere else, I really want to do it on the carpark," he said.

The New Yorker said he wasn't considering other venues at this stage.

"What's very interesting about the Chapel Street precinct is there are amazing places to go to, restaurants, cafes, stores, but to gather 1000 or 10,000 in that area is impossible. Even if I wanted a work going down Chapel Street I have the trolley wires above my head and it would be impossible and dangerous to go above them with a lift," he said.

"So I wanted to find a location where I could find at least 350 people or 500 people so I found the carpark and thought it was wonderful, very barren, very apocalyptic... I was like, this is a great location. There is no Woolworths sign and it's very peaceful up there so I said let's do it up here."

He also rubbished suggestions the carpark was busy on a Saturday morning.

"I was up there at 9.30am in the morning and there were only four cars on the roof and the whole place was empty. We will be finished by 9.30am. So I just don't know if they are seeing the whole picture here. We won't be disturbing people," he said.

"I think it will be a great thing if they allow me to do it."

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the decision rested with Woolworths.

“Any rooftop in July in Melbourne’s going to be reasonably chilly, I would think, but I’m sure they’ll find an alternative venue,” Premier Daniel Andrews said on Thursday.

Minister for Tourism and Major Events John Eren questioned Woolworths' decision.

"It [the shoot] would be something that goes global and certainly the backdrop would be Melbourne," he told radio station 3AW on Thursday morning.

"I would think that Woolies might reconsider their options and we'll see what happens in the future. We want to ensure we are under the spotlight in terms of what a wonderful city Melbourne is."

Tunick's previous Australian works include a photograph in front of Sydney's Opera House in 2010, and a 2001 shot in Melbourne with a crowd of 4500 people along the banks of the Yarra.

- With AAP